It’s been dyno’d at 312bhp which means there’s room for further tuning of the V8 if you really wanted to race at the front, and the vendor feels it could do with a proper suspension set-up to tweak the handling for competition. It’s an interesting proposition: you could use it immediately as the most thrilling road-legal track-day car, even though it’s pretty fierce for extended road use. It’s been kept road legal and he’s done all of 100 miles or so in the years he’s owned it, but feels it needs someone to use it properly rather than allow it to continue as a garage queen. However, with his existing racing commitments the one thing he didn’t get round to was actually competing in the car. #Maverick grabber plusNonetheless, our vendor spent considerable sums on a new limited-slip differential, a gearbox rebuild, safety equipment, tyres, mechanical improvements to brakes, tidying of bodywork and paint, plus much else. He then took a job in Australia and was obliged to sell the car to our vendor, a keen racer and a man with plenty of other cars to distract him. The new owner, an engineer, got it going again with a 289 cu-in V8 in a hot but not ‘full race’ state of tune, plus a Ford Toploader gearbox and a standard differential. Apparently the car took part in a couple of events with the Classic Touring Car Racing Club but was then sold on minus its engine, gearbox and differential. This Maverick was converted for racing use before our vendor bought it six years ago, but he’s been able to fill us in on a little of the history. #Maverick grabber upgradeThat, plus the many shared components with the Falcon and Mustang, makes them easy to upgrade or indeed to turn into competitive racing cars. But then in 1971 a V8 engine joined the range and the Grabber became a separate model, albeit no threat to a Boss Mustang – which was just as Ford intended.ĭespite this, the V8-powered Maverick always went well because it was one of the lightest American cars of its day at less than 1250kg. Ford also offered a trim package called the Grabber for 1970, with little more than stripes and a blacked-out grille to start with. That meant ‘Thriftpower’ six-cylinder engines and low prices – barely $2000 for the base model. This time, however, the car wasn’t inventing a new sector like the Mustang, but phasing out the Falcon as Ford’s entry-level, mass-market moneymaker from 1969. It was basically the same trick over again – take the well-proven Falcon platform, lop a bit out of the wheelbase (which is five inches shorter than the Mustang) and repurpose the old Falcon running gear and driveline options under some fresh new styling. The Maverick was developed later in the 1960s as a sub-compact rival to some of the European and Japanese imports that were starting to give Detroit a headache, but also to fight the Chevrolet Nova and Dodge Dart from GM and Chrysler. The 1964 Mustang was based on the unit-body Ford Falcon introduced back in 1960, or more specifically on the Falcon Sprint of 1963. And it’s important to mention the Mustang because both cars share a common ancestor – the Ford Falcon. You’re looking at one of the most successful Ford models of all time, yet somehow the Maverick remains almost unknown on this side of the Atlantic.įord sold 579,000 of them in their first year, almost touching the Mustang’s record debut-year sales of 619,000, and more than doubling the total for Mustang sales in 1970.
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